gapingvoid: "cartoons drawn on the back of business cards"

If learning a lot about your market doesn't help you increase sales, you probably shouldn't be in the business of selling things.

Amen, Frosty! ;-)

Doesn't this assume that there's substantial overlap between "bloggers willing to blag a free bottle" and the market for premium wine?

Seems to me the #1 lesson from this might be: bloggers like freebies.

It does not assume this, James. You assume I assume this, James.

;-)

Intuitively, I would imagine that blogging media bods in London and the UK are a pretty good micro market for a wine company. Firstly, they probably drink a fair bit. Secondly, they probably talk to lots of people. But presumably that's what this campaign will establish.

The other thing is that it's probably a good bet that a lot of bloggers would very much like Hugh to be successful with this "launch a successful national brand through blogging" experiment. Even if they're not in marketing/blogbusiness/whatever, it fits with their (our) sense of the blogworld as an important new aspect of society.

Oddly enough, a quick look at Technorati shows the "wine" tag dominated by some kind of autoblog called "Wine Center." Hopefully just a transient phase. God, I hope blogging and tagging don't get as polluted as Google has become. But that's another topic.

http://technorati.com/tag/wine

On the basis that I did not receive any wine despite registering I am boycotting Stormhoek on a point of principal. How does that fit?

Thanks for the melodrama, Dave.

I also did say if you didn't receive your wine by August 1st, do let me know and I'd take care of it.

And all I got was this rather ungracious comment from you.

If you want your wine, please drop me an e-mail and I'll chase after the Stormhoek folk. Otherwise, enjoy your boycott.

But to answer your question, how does that fit? Well, frankly, I think you're a bit of an arse. How does that fit with you?

That's cool, I guess as with all online business models the key is in the fulfilment not the product and the brand values are always at stake whenever you fail to deliver. I actually tasted the wine at a show recently and was a bit underwhelmed. I think if you go to South Africa you find that they keep all the good stuff over there.

Dave, I get the feeling you'd be underwhelmed regardless of what was delivered, so pardon me if I fail to lose any sleep.

Enjoy your boycott ;-)

I wonder if Dave has been to SA to discover this? There is in fact a host of stunning wines coming from South Africa at the moment - at all price levels and available in the UK. I havent received my bottle either (and its the 3rd) but I love the idea of raising a brands profile by blogging.

I also think that the UK is not ready for such activity just yet but that is my own arse-end opinion.

Dave, it's spelled 'principle' by the way.

from dictionary.com:
"Usage Note: Principal and principle are often confused but have no meanings in common. Principle is only a noun and usually refers to a rule or standard. Principal is both a noun and an adjective. As a noun, it has specialized meanings in law and finance, but in general usage it refers to a person who holds a high position or plays an important role: a meeting among all the principals in the transaction. As an adjective it has the sense of 'chief' or 'leading': The coach's principal concern is the quarterback's health."

If you can be an arse so can I :)

Dave, it's spelled 'principle' by the way.

from dictionary.com:
"Usage Note: Principal and principle are often confused but have no meanings in common. Principle is only a noun and usually refers to a rule or standard. Principal is both a noun and an adjective. As a noun, it has specialized meanings in law and finance, but in general usage it refers to a person who holds a high position or plays an important role: a meeting among all the principals in the transaction. As an adjective it has the sense of 'chief' or 'leading': The coach's principal concern is the quarterback's health."

If you can be an arse so can I :)

Dave, what the heck happened to innocent till proved guilty? Of presuming something may have got lost in the post? Of enquiring and being informed before making dumbass statements?
   The best wines are in New Zealand. My turn to be an arse.

It's so easy to criticize; everyone's an editor. The hard tack is inventing, investing, and risking criticism from nitwits who don't have the b*lls (buy a vowel) to invent, invest and risk themselves. Hugh, I'm a fan! SL

Jack - I agree - there are many good Sauvignon Blanc's from New Zealand - at less than the Stormhoek £6 price point.

In the UK you can also get some good supermarket own label Sancerre for a similar price.

Hugh - I've worked with Dave for 2 years and he's not an arse - but hey - maybe it's contagious and I'm an arse too!

Maybe everyone who reads this comment will become an arse... (with apologies to "In and Out")

haha :)

I'd say that's not too arsy. Perhaps a bit out of context. It raises the point that greater exposure can be as much a curse as it is a blessing.

On the plus side it means that the hopefully excellent customer service you provide also becomes more public. In this case I don't think you can judge someone's comments on just one sentence: a point is not a trend.

I think coming back and calling Dave an arse straight-off is a little snappy...

My wine's in the fridge and I'm anticipating waxing lyrical about it soon. Thanks, Stormhoeck.

Just to save a whole pile of posts...

The best wine comes from [country I live in]. Frankly, I find the wine from [country you live in] to be fairly average and over priced.

And, [person claiming superiority of country they live in] seems like quite a jerk!

Does that wrap it all up? ;)